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Sri Lanka’s manufacturing and service activities drop in June 2022
Monday, July 18, 2022, 9:58 a.m. SL time, ColomboPage News Desk, Sri Lanka.
July 18, Colombo: Manufacturing and services activities in Sri Lanka declined in June 2022, the Central Bank’s Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) survey released last Friday (July 15) showed.
The manufacturing PMI registering an index value of 44.1 declined by 6.2 index points from the previous month in June 2022, indicating a decline in manufacturing activities on a monthly basis.
This is explained by the drop in all sub-indices except for supplier delivery time, according to the Central Bank report.
New orders fell particularly in the food and beverage manufacturing sector, partly due to deteriorating purchasing power in a highly inflationary environment.
Many export-oriented manufacturing companies also saw lower-than-expected orders as overseas buyers worried about the fragile political and economic situation in the county and possible disruptions in order fulfillment.
The drop in production levels in June 2022 compared to the previous month was mainly due to the shortage of materials and the persistent shortage of energy.
Fuel scarcity has affected production directly, as well as indirectly through transportation difficulties.
Additionally, the employment sub-index recorded a month-over-month decline, particularly in the food and beverage manufacturing sector.
The inventory of purchases decreased mainly due to the unavailability of the quantities required on the domestic market and difficulties in opening letters of credit for the import of materials.
Supplier delivery time further lengthened during the month at a higher rate, mainly due to delays in customs clearance of imported goods, COVID-related blockages in China, vessel delays and shortage of diesel which has affected domestic transport.
For the following three months, the overall expectations for manufacturing activities continued to deteriorate from the previous month due to the uncertain economic environment prevailing in the country, supply-side constraints and a possible weakening of external demand.
The services PMI fell further to an index value of 40.3 in June 2022, indicating a contraction in services activities for the third consecutive month.
This was due to declines in the new business, business activity, employment and business forecast sub-indices.
New businesses declined further in June 2022 compared to May 2022, particularly with declines seen in the transportation, accommodation, food service and education sub-sectors.
Ongoing supply-side constraints, including severe fuel shortages, led to a further decline in business activity in the services sector in June.
In addition, many respondents pointed out that the moderation in consumer spending amid strong inflationary pressures, rising interest rates, transportation issues and pessimism about the economic outlook further weakened demand, particularly with regard to discretionary elements.
In this context, the sub-sectors of other personal activities, transportation, wholesale and retail trade, accommodation, restaurants and education recorded sharp declines during the month.
Meanwhile, the continued decline in tourist arrivals in Sri Lanka, fueled by adverse travel advisories, has also negatively affected business activities related to several sub-sectors.
Employment continued to decline in June due to the freeze on new hiring, contract expiries, retirements and resignations.
Due to shortages of fuel and other supplies, transportation difficulties faced by staff and power outages, backlogs increased further during the month.
Expectations for business activities for the next three months slumped further in June due to continued unfavorable supply and demand conditions amid continued and heightened uncertainties in the country.


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Today marks the one-year anniversary of Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl, and to celebrate the passing of this announcement, publisher GameMill has revealed that Rocko will be introduced to the game’s roster on Friday. The titular character of Rocko’s Modern Life is the player of the game. Although no playable characters have been announced, there are still plenty of other Nickelodeon icons that would fit well with the rest of the roster. To pick those who like Jimmy Neutron, Donatello, or Raphael would likely attract visitors, but it’s impossible to say if there is another one to come.
The release date for the Rocko game was announced by the official twitter account and can be found in the Twitter idol.
The Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl turns a year old today.From the whole team: we cannot thank the community enough for the support, support and feedback we have received all year, and that they are very proud to join the community.
Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl (@NickBrawlGame) October 5, 2022 2022
For those unfamiliar with Rocko’s Modern Life, the animated series has gone on Nickelodeon back in 1993, lasting 4 seasons. The first character from the show to appear playable in the All-Star Brawl, but his character as Heffer and Ed Bighead would be great in the game, should there be enough demand. Even though the series ended a long time ago, it remains a fan favorite, and is currently streaming on Paramount+.
The Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl has been able to perform many enhancements since its first release. And as well as adding playable characters like Rocko, Hugh Neutron and Garfield, GameMill has made many improvements, including balance updates and voice acting. Thus, the competition continued. I think that will be enough so that all-star Brawl could continue to see more content from GameMill, remains unknown. The fans will only be forced to settle for Rocko and make their voices heard about what they want to see in the future!
Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl is now available on Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5 and PC. You can see all our previous reporting of this game here.
Do you have a Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl yet? Do you plan to download Rocko on Friday?

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Welcome to AI Decoded, Fast Company’s weekly LinkedIn newsletter that breaks down the most important news in the world of AI. If a friend or colleague shared this newsletter with you, you can sign up to receive it every week here.
Intel’s quiet role in the AI boom
Intel isn’t often mentioned as one of the main players in the generative AI boom. While Intel made the chips that drove the personal computing revolution, it’s rival company Nvidia that has supplied the graphics processing units (GPUs) that power the models underpinning tools like ChatGPT and Midjourney. But the Nvidia chips are in short supply, and their prices are rising. Relying so much on one company to power large models is a situation nobody likes (except Nvidia).
In the real world, enterprises are using a variety of AI models, many of them smaller and more specialized than frontier models like OpenAI’s GPT-4 and Meta’s Llama. Reluctant to send their proprietary data out to third-party models, many enterprises are building their own models using open source code and hosting them on their own servers. Intel believes its chips are well suited to running these smaller, homegrown models.
Intel has been working on making AI models run more efficiently on its central processing units (CPUs) and hardware accelerators. In fact, the 55-year-old company just tested its hardware running some popular generative AI models against the commonly used MLPerf performance benchmarks, and the results are competitive (and improving). It’s also been working with an AI platform called Numenta, which takes lessons from neuroscience to improve the performance and power efficiency of AI models. Together, the two entities are developing tech to make AI models run more efficiently on Intel’s Xeon CPUs.
In this first flash of light from the arrival of a new way of computing, companies are sparing no expense to get their first generative AI models trained and into operation. But as time goes on, enterprises will naturally focus more on controlling costs. Intel wants to be ready with an answer when the time comes.
In defense of Humane’s much-hyped AI wearable
Humane recently unveiled its personal AI device, the AI Pin, a small AI-enabled square that pins to a lapel. It’s priced similarly to a smartphone at $699, and requires a wireless subscription. It has no screen; the primary means of controlling the device is by talking to it. For vital visual information, it projects images onto the user’s palm.
The core idea of the Pin is providing a personalized AI agent that’s an expert on you and is always there with you to help. Humane says the Pin is “the embodiment of our vision to integrate AI into the fabric of daily life.” But so far, it’s been getting mixed reviews. Critics have found the device a bit awkward to use. And the device can’t yet train its AI model on the user’s email, calendar, and documents. (On that latter point, the company is planning to provide a self-service kit to developers to bring all kinds of specialized knowledge into the Pin.)
And yet, I’m still a fan. There’s a lot of energy and hype around the Pin, and it’s showing up just when the world is beginning to embrace the next big thing in personal computing: agents. At least Bill Gates thinks so: “In short, agents will be able to help with virtually any activity and any area of life,” he wrote in a recent blog post. “Agents will be the next platform.” Of course, it’s very possible that these agents will be contained within smartphones. I hope not. Part of the idea of a dedicated, hands-free AI device is allowing people to look up, to stay engaged in the real world.
Building my first GPT
OpenAI last week launched its GPTs, which are like user-friendly versions of ChatGPT that can be personalized and trained. This week, I opened the GPT Builder (in beta) and created a GPT called MarkWrites, which I hoped I could train to write a news story in my own writing style. My GPT yielded mixed results.
Creating and training my GPT was easy. The GPT Builder tool helped me find the MarkWrites name and create a little logo of a quill and inkwell. I then instructed it to go to Fast Company’s website and read my articles to learn my writing style. No problem, it said. I told it to write concise sentences that contain only one thought, or two related thoughts. I told it to check facts using the internet. No problem, it said. Then it began prodding me to try out my new GPT in the “playground” that takes up the entire right side of the Builder interface.
Over in the playground, I uploaded a recent press release and told the newly born GPT to make a news story out of it. On the first try, it produced a point-by-point recreation of the document—not exactly discerning journalism. I told the GPT to use the “inverted pyramid” style to create a proper news story (meaning putting the most important information up top). It apparently understood, and about 20 seconds later responded with a news story with a traditional “lede” paragraph followed by a series of supporting paragraphs. The writing was a bit wooden, and I couldn’t really see any signs of my own style (or maybe my writing style is wooden!) but overall it read pretty well.
But to my surprise, the main problem was a familiar one for AI chatbots. Instead of simply relaying the numbers in the press release into the story, it changed one crucial one, hallucinating another in its place. I will run more experiments, perhaps prompting the GPT more explicitly about learning my writing style and checking facts. But for now at least, I think my journalism job is safe.
More AI coverage from Fast Company:
- Every company has an AI strategy now. Almost no one’s ready to implement it
- Airbnb just bought a stealth AI company for slightly under $200 million
- Bumble’s founder hopes to use AI to prevent toxic relationships before they happen
- Tech giants are trying to stop deepfakes from influencing the 2024 election. Good luck
From around the web:
- Biden, Xi set to pledge ban on AI in autonomous weapons like drones, nuclear warhead control: sources (South China Morning Post)
- Nvidia unveils H200, its newest high-end chip for training AI models (CNBC)
- Exclusive: Google in talks to invest in AI startup Character.AI (Reuters)
- OpenAI’s New Weapon in Talent War With Google: $10 Million Pay Packages for Researchers (The Information)


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The Government has published its Quarterly Energy Prices report for October – December 2019.
The report is helpful for understanding trends in energy pricing. You can read the full report here. Highlights which are relevant for business energy users:
- Average industrial prices in Q4 2019 rose by 5.6% for electricity but fell by 13% for gas (all in real terms, not seasonally adjusted).
- Compared to the previous year, the average price paid by electricity consumers in the manufacturing industry, in cash terms excluding CCL, increased by 3.0%. There was moderate variation in the prices by size of consumer. The small and extra-large consumers saw increases in their prices paid of 3.5 and 11% respectively, while the medium and large consumers saw increases of 0.1 and 4.4% respectively.
- In Q4, wholesale gas prices were 50% lower than the previous year. The average price for gas consumers, in cash terms excluding CCL, decreased by 17% overall. The larger consumers saw a much greater decrease in their average price of gas (nearly 20%) compared to an 11% decrease in the medium consumer price. Prices for the small consumers increased by 8.4 per cent over the same period.
- Compared to the same quarter in the previous year, coal fell by 8.2%. The report noted that the coal mix is changing with coal use decreasing with a shift towards renewables. Q4 2018 – Q4 2019 saw a drop by 27% in the price of coal used for electricity generation and a drop of 33% on coal used by gas generation.
- In the manufacturing sector, average annual electricity prices have been on a general upward trend, by 2019 the average electricity price was the highest for over a decade. Average gas prices in manufacturing have been more variable. In 2016 average gas prices were 37% lower than the peak in 2013. Gas prices in the manufacturing sector increased over the next two years but fell in 2019 by 9.3% on the previous year as demand in industries fell and wholesale gas prices fell 42%.
- In 2019, coal prices were 1.6% lower than in the previous year.


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Xiaomi’s President for Mobile Division Zeng Xuezhong and Redmi General Manager Lu Weibing has started teasing the arrival of a new smartphone in China. It can be said on the basis of recent reports that the company could be gearing up to announce the Redmi K30S. A tipster had recently claimed that the Redmi K30S will go official on Nov. 1
Xuezhong’s Weibo post suggests that the company is gearing up to launch a flagship phone. It is believed that the Xiaomi Mi 10T flagship phone that recently went official in global markets will be breaking cover in China as the Redmi K30S. The handset has already appeared in the database of China’s TENAA regulatory body with all its specifications and images.
According to a tipster, the Redmi K30S launch date will be confirmed on Oct. 27 and the company will be announcing it on Nov. 1. The arrival of the phone will be timed for the Single’s Day shopping festival that takes place on Nov. 11 in China each year. Another tipster has claimed that the Redmi K30S will carry attractive pricing.
Redmi K30S Specifications (Rumored)
The Redmi K30S has a 6.67-inch IPS LCD display with punch-hole design. The 144Hz refresh rate supporting screen offers full HD+ resolution. It has a front camera of 20-megapixel and its rear side is fitted with a 64-megapixel (Sony IMX682) + 13-megapixel (ultrawide) + 5-megapixel (macro) triple camera system.
The MIUI 12 based Android 10 OS comes preinstalled on the Redmi K30S. It is powered by the Snapdragon 865 mobile platform, LPDDR5 RAM, and 5,000mAh battery with 33W fast charging support. It has UFS 3.1 storage but lacks a microSD card slot. Also, the phone does not feature a 3.5mm audio jack.


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It is a double whammy for Punjab as after pharma units that migrated to Himachal Pradesh to avail off special concessions and textile units that moved to Madhya Pradesh,it is the turn of cycle industry that is shifting to Bihar now!
Punjab manufactures as much as 90% of countrys total cycles. Big players in cycle industry are moving out to Bihar from Punjab to avail off host of benefits offered by the Bihar government which has requisitioned 12 lakh cycles from manufacturers for the current year itself.
Munjals famous Hero Cycles having manufacturing facilities in Ludhiana,the industrial hub of Punjab has been approached by the Bihar government. Not only Hero Group,the other major player Avon Cycles too has been offered land and other facilities to set up unit at Hazipur or Muzafarpur in Bihar. Nova Cycles and some other smaller units too have been tipped by the Bihar government to move to that state.
The move comes at a time when exporters and manufacturers of bicycle were demanding rollback of excise duty on local manufacturers and also pitching for imposition of anti-dumping duty on cycles imported from China.
There are about 4,500 bicycle manufacturing units in Punjab. The cycle industry has been raising a demand to impose a 35% anti-dumping duty on cycle parts imported from China saying that the measure was necessary to offset the indirect subsidy that China offers to its industry by way of a fixed exchange rate.
DS Chawla,president of United Cycle Manufacturers and Parts Association told FE that it was ironic that that as against a cycle manufactured by domestic unit costing R1,000 a Chinese cycle costs not more than R700.
Cycle manufacturers say that the Bihar chief ministers Balik-Balika Yozana for which the state needs 12 lakh cycles for the current year itself was also serving as a stimulus to cycle manufactures to move to Bihar state. Managing director of Nova Cycles,HM Pahwa said that Nova Cycles was seriously considering the proposal to set up unit in Bihar as incentives are mouth watering.
The move may indeed prove to be double whammy for Punjab government which has already been rattled by Punjabs top textile units setting up new plants in Madhya Pradesh where cheap land availability and host of incentives have lured many units.
The R3,500-crore Vardhman Group,one of the largest integrated textile players in the country has already acquired 700 acres land in Madhya Pradesh and would pump in R2,500 crore in that state. Another big company,Punjabs Abhishek Industries,a flagship company of the Trident Group has purchased about 1,000 acres land in Madhya Pradesh where it plans to invest R3000 crore.
Trident Group managing director ,Rajinder Gupta confirmed to FE that availability of good quality cotton,cheap labour,uninterrupted power and a pan India market were the factors behind textile units shifting to Madhya Pradesh.
He disclosed that the company has already commenced commercial production of its two yarn spinning units in Madhya Pradesh while two more units would roll out during 2011 and 2012. The first unit at Budni in Madhya Pradesh has 50,400 spindles with the production capacity of 7,098 million tonne yarn while the second unit has 50,400 spindles.
The Trident Group R3,000 crore Ludhiana based Nahar Group having interests in spinning,knitting,weaving,processing,hosiery and garments has also acquired 200 acres land in Madhya Pradesh to set up facilities in textiles.
Several pharma units from Punjab including some big names like Ind-Swift,Venus Remedies and Nectar Lifesciences have already moved to Himachal Pradesh which offered tax holiday for 10 years to new units. Punjab chief minister,Parkash Singh Badal had himself admitted that about R4,000 crore investment had actually gone out from Punjab to Himachal in view of shifting of pharma units.
While Punjab is still pressing Centre to allow it level playing field by extending concessions to the state,the move by cycle industry to Bihar state would surely ring alarm bells in the state as more than 4,500 cycle units in Punjab produce 50,000 cycles a day,provide direct employment to over 25 lakh people directly and indirectly.
📣 The Indian Express is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@indianexpress) and stay updated with the latest headlines


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Monday, March 11, 2013
The popular bar and restaurant based in Buckhead may open another Atlanta outpost.
Fadó Irish Pub could be opening a second Atlanta location in West Midtown's Elan Westside Apartments project, according to the Atlanta Business Chronicle. The apartment project, under construction at the intersection of Howell Mill and 14th Street, began construction last fall and is slated to deliver 197 apartments and 11,000 square feet of retail space by fall. The Business Chronicle quoted a developer of the retail portion of the development as saying Fadó is “one of the folks we are talking to.” Fadó is a chain with locations in about a dozen cities, but the original was in Buckhead at the corner of Peachtree Road and Buckhead Avenue. It was torn down in 2007 to make way for a redevelopment project known at the time as Streets of …
Saturday, December 22, 2012
Perennial Properties proposed development would include 230 apartments and 9,000 square feet of restaurant and retail space wrapped around a multilevel parking deck.
A newly proposed mixed-use development targeting Atlanta’s westside would include 230 apartments and 9,000 square feet of restaurant and retail space wrapped around a multilevel parking deck. Perennial Properties wants to rezone 2.965 acres of property bounded by 9th Street, 8th Street, Brady Avenue and Howell Mill Road near where The Optimist restaurant currently sits and hopefully deliver the project by fall of 2014. The proposed rezoning from I-1 and I-2 to MRC-3 for 930 Howell Mill is to enable the site to allow multifamily units to be constructed on the property, along with the retail and restaurant in the existing building to remain. In its application to the city, Perennial Properties indicated the project is a re-development that …
Sunday, December 16, 2012
A Midtown Patch Local Voices writer asks what exactly to call the burgeoning areas that are somewhat loosely defined by the Marietta Street Artery, Howell Mill, Huff Road, Northside Drive, Tech Parkway, and Chattahoochee Avenue corridors?
Monday, October 29, 2012
Westside shopping destination welcomes Tennessee native Kayce Hughes and her mix of clothing, vintage accessories and home goods.
The westside mixed-use development Westside Provisions District is preparing to welcome retailer Kayce Hughes to its tenant family this winter. The vintage-inspired clothing store announced in a press release Monday that it will occupy 1,751 square feet of retail space in the development located off Howell Mill Road. It is expected the retailer will occupy a space in the same building that is home to the White Provision Residences. Kayce Hughes will offer a timeless mix of clothing, vintage accessories and home goods. The retailer will join a distinctive blend of existing shops, boutiques and restaurants the destination has to offer. “We’re thrilled to have Kayce Hughes join us in Atlanta,” said Michael Phillips, COO of Jamestown, the real…


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Tern join the Institute of Customer Service
We are pleased to announce as at 1st October 2013, Tern are now a member of the Institute of Customer Service. The Institute is the independent, professional membership body for customer service. Their vision is a world where excellent customer service is seen to make a credible impact on the performance of organisations, customer service professionals are recognised and respected and service excellence is sought out by wider society.
Tern, working closely with our various clients, have always been committed to ensuring excellent customer service can be achieved in all environments and industries and it is this commitment that made us decide to join the ICS.
Gary Edwards, Director of Tern said ‘We are pleased to now be a member of the Institute of Customer Service. They take a lot of action towards improving Customer Service in the UK and we look forward to working with them closely over the coming months and in to 2014 – our 25th year’
It is National Customer Service week next week - 7th to 13th Oct - so look out for more news on Tern and the Institute.
For more information on The Institute of Customer Service please visit their website http://www.instituteofcustomerservice.com/
“Maintaining the highest levels of service is paramount in our customer offer and Tern are key in enabling us to track service and build accountability into our personnel management." ...
We are happy to offer a free no obligation consultation


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Namco Bandai has announced FromSoftware’s Armored Core V will be released on March 20 in North America and on March 23 in Europe. Those who pre-order the game through GameStop in NA will also gain exclusive access to the Heavy Assault Pack, which includes additional weapons and parts for those planning to stop the hell out of their buddies day one in online multiplayer. ACV will be available on PS3 and Xbox 360.
Sometimes we include links to online retail stores. If you click on one and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. For more information, go here.


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A followup on the recently announced Target + Neiman Marcus Holiday Collection: the retail duo has recently this teaser video which shares just a touch of what is coming this holiday season from the Holiday 24 collection. The video itself is the usual teasing of praise and high words from designers, including Diane von Furstenberg, Robert Rodriguez, and Thom Browne.
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Having a little pout in response to judge’s ruling maybe?
Check it out:
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel is pushing an ordinance that will ban gun stores in “99.5 percent” of the city and require video recording of all gun sales at the stores that are allowed to exist.
The ordinance will also require the few gun stores that exist to perform “quarterly audits of their gun sales and allow police to inspect their records.”
According to CBS Local, this stringent ordinance comes in response to a “federal judge’s ruling in January that Chicago’s longtime ban on gun stores was unconstitutional.” Chicago was given “six months to approve store restrictions short of a ban.”


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Woolworths wage theft blows out, flags redundancies
Woolworths now says it owes thousands of employees nearly $400 million in underpaid wages. Photo: Getty
Supermarket giant Woolworths has revealed another blowout in its wage theft scandal, admitting it owes $390 million to short-changed workers after uncovering more in its hotels division.
In an announcement to the ASX on Tuesday morning, the retailer said it had identified previously unrecognised payment shortfalls in salaried staff at its ALH Hotels.
It came as the company also said it would set aside $176 million to cover redundancy payouts for workers who will lose their jobs as it replaces distribution centres in Sydney and Melbourne with two more automated centres in Sydney.
Woolworths has not said how many jobs will be lost in its five-year redevelopment plan. But the ABC and News Corp are reporting it will be as many as 1300.
The SDA, which is the union for retail, warehouse and fast food workers, said it was disappointed that further automation of Woolworths’ distribution will mean job losses in the medium term.
“The union hopes Woolworths lives up to its commitment to be ‘conservative’ in handling a process that comes as the COVID-19 pandemic is making the employment of many low-paid workers more fragile and insecure than at any time since the Great Depression,” SDA national secretary Gerard Dwyer said.
Nor did Woolworths say how many staff are now affected by its underpayment, but said they had not been paid properly under the general hospitality industry award in the 2018 and 2019 financial years.
With the inclusion of additional wage records, accrued interest on back-payments still owed and a broader review of awards across the group, Woolworths said the amount it owed current and former staff had blown out by a further $105 million.
The company’s underpayment is one of Australia’s biggest wage theft scandals and was first revealed in October 2019, when Woolworths said it owed about 5700 staff between $200 million and $300 million.
Mr Dwyer said the admission was another acknowledgement that “too many companies have simply been getting their payroll responsibilities wrong”.
“This would not have happened if companies had paid greater attention to their payroll systems and to the modern awards they are legally responsible for applying to ensure their employees get the pay to which they are entitled,” Mr Dwyer said.
In February, Woolworths admitted the shortfall had exceeded its worst estimates, blowing out to $315 million – and said it was likely to rise further. It had also been found to affect 7000 employees.
“The group continues to review the estimated payment shortfall liability, which is based on calculations involving a high degree of complexity, and which remains subject to further analysis of historical years and the completion of the review of all awards applicable across the group,” the company said on Tuesday.
Chief executive Brad Banducci said Woolworths was committed to fully rectifying any shortfalls as quickly as possible.
Also on Tuesday, the company said trading had remained strong in the June quarter, with food sales in Australia up 8.6 per cent, and in New Zealand up 15.1 per cent.
Sales at Big W jumped 27.8 per cent in the 10 weeks to June 14, while the Endeavour drinks business had 21.4 per cent growth in the same period.
By comparison, sales had grown in the low single digits during the first half in all four segments.
The retail giant said it expected full-year earnings before interest and tax to be $3.2 billion-$3.25 billion, compared to $3.29 billion for a 53-week period last year.
However, earnings for its Hotels business, which has been hit by venue closures, will be between $160 million and $170 million, down from $355 million last year.
Woolworths will report full-year results on August 27.


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BABY CORN FARMING
China's strongest weapon in a trade war with Donald Trump may backfire
The seasonality of the soybean trade is one reason that China can’t easily replace US supply, even though authorities in Beijing have sought to diversify.
Farmers protest may bring challenges to Narendra Modi before polls
Latest farmer protests have been a headache for Modi who promised to doubl...
How private sector is helping cultivators with technology, buyback and improving their social standards
Godrej Agrovet works with 2 million f...
Invisible enemies and solid friends: Commodities in 2018
It looks like the Bloomberg Commodity Index will end 2017 back in the red again.
How the egg has gone from leaving you light on your feet to feeling heavy in the pocket
Egg prices at the retail level peak during November and January every year. This year, the rally started before time due to early onset of winter,” says NECC Vice Chairman.
Discover the chef in you with celebrity cooks in Bengaluru
Exclusive culinary classes by international and Indian celebrity chefs for intimate groups is the new trend in the IT city.
Fake meat, free markets ease North Koreans' hunger
The creation and informal trade of injogogi and other foods offers a window into a barter economy that has kept North Korea afloat.
Monsanto exits cotton seeds business in India
Monsanto has faced headwinds in the cotton seeds market and threatened to exit India after New Delhi had imposed price controls.
How lift irrigation saves this town
Although the taluk -known for its colourful wooden toys -is part of the drought-hit Ramanagara district, its green farms of plantain, papaya, baby corn and other cash crops in several villages, tell a different story.
Farmers open up barns as corn hits magic price levels
“We had a couple of days of very strong farmer selling,” Juan Luciano, the CEO of Chicago-based Archer-Daniels-Midland, said on a call with analysts on Tuesday.
Top stocks in focus on Friday, 8 September 2017
Here is a list of top stocks that are likely to be in focus in today's trading session.
Agrarian crisis: Serious drought looms large over South India
Reeling off the numbers, the farmer said the cost of cultivating corn on two acres alone would run up to Rs 15,000.
Agriculture experts call on farmers to focus on self marketing
Punjab being one of the highest potato producing states, its farmers can considerably add to their income through this crop, they said.
Agri farms leveraging a growing demand for exotic vegetables and spices in the food services sector
Farms across the country are coming up with produce grown especially for premium eateries as chefs travel far and wide to pick up that secret ingredient.
Now even money is running out in hurricane-hit Puerto Rico
Engineer Octavio Cortes predicts it will only get worse because so many of the problems are inter-connected and cannot be easily resolved.


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Barneys New York is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, the latest retailer to buckle as shoppers move online and real estate costs soar.
The iconic clothier founded almost a century ago will keep the doors open at its 10-story Madison Avenue store, but its secured $75 million in financing to pay employees and vendors as it seeks a buyer.
Stores in Chicago, Las Vegas and Seattle will close. Twelve concept and warehouse locations will also close and the company said Tuesday it’s reviewing other store leases. Stores in Beverly Hills, California, San Francisco and in Boston will remain open, as well as two warehouse locations in New York and California. It will also have an online presence.
Barneys’ landlord in Manhattan doubled the rent of its flagship store to nearly $30 million earlier this year.
“Like many in our industry, Barneys New York’s financial position has been dramatically impacted by the challenging retail environment and rent structures that are excessively high relative to market demand,” said CEO Daniella Vitale.
It its bankruptcy filing in the Southern District of New York, Barneys lists more than $100 million in debt, and more than $100 million in assets.
Retailers are fighting to maintain sales and they’re not getting much relief on leases, creating a financial vice that is squeezing even iconic brands like Barneys New York.
The number of retail store closed in the U.S. this year has already surpassed the total number in 2018, according to Coresight Research, which expects 12,000 will be shuttered in 2019. Coresight said 7,567 retail stores have closed this year, compared with 5,864 in all of 2018.
The escalating trade war between China and the U.S. has intensified that pressure, leaving clothing companies scrambling to find new routes and suppliers. Over the past year, the retail sector has consistently bled jobs.
Barneys’ roots date back to 1923, when Barney Pressman pawned his wife’s engagement ring and used the cash to open a 500 square foot men’s discount clothing store on Seventh Ave. and 17th St. in Manhattan.
His son shifted the company’s focus to luxury clothing in the 1960s and it began to expand nationwide in the 1990s.
The company’s crown jewel, its Madison Avenue location, opened in 1993, two years before Amazon initiated operations as an online bookstore.
Joseph Aquino, who runs a real estate services firm under his name in Manhattan, says the days of the shop-til-you drop mentality on Madison Avenue popularized by the HBO popular series of the 1990s “Sex in the City” are over.
“She was 45 and now she is 65… She isn’t shopping like she was 45,” Aquino said. “We are in the phase where a lot of younger shoppers don’t want to go the high street. They sit around and buy online and that’s what we are fighting against.”


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J.C. Penney Company News
Target says turnaround efforts are bringing shoppers back
Target, which is remodeling stores and bolstering its online operations, showed signs Wednesday that the moves are starting to win back shoppers.
Leaked email shows HBO negotiating with hackers BOSTON (AP) — Hackers released an email from HBO in which the company expressed willingness to pay them $250,000 as part of a negotiation over electronic data swiped from HBO's servers. The July 27 email was sent by an HBO executive who thanked the
US stocks snap 3-day losing streak in roller coaster week
Gains among technology companies helped snap a three-day losing streak for U.S. stocks Friday, though the market ended with its worst weekly loss since March
Etsy, Camping World rise, while Nvidia, J .C . Penney fall
Stocks that moved substantially or traded heavily Friday: J.C. Penney Inc., down 78 cents to $3.93 The struggling department store chain reported quarterly results that fell short of Wall Street's expectations. Luxoft Holding Inc., down $15.10 to $45.70 The software and IT company reported a big
JC Penney results extend a gloomy week for retailers
Sales at established JC Penney stores faded again during its most recent quarter, capping a gloomy week for U.S. retailers.
Department stores _ except Nordstrom _ see sales metric drop
Macy's, which is trying to turn its business around, said Thursday that an important sales figure fell again in the latest quarter, its tenth straight quarter of sales declines.
8 of the most crowded US beaches and where to go instead
You know the feeling: You have your towel, beach chair and sunglasses in tow, ready for a relaxing beach vacation, when you're met with hordes of tourists looking to do the same. While some spots are worth braving crowds for , we're often looking to get some peace and quiet, where we can listen to
Man gives professional portraits he took with his cat for Mother's Day
Andrew Wroble of Hollyville Texas, took professional photos with his cat Charlie as the purr-fect Mother's Day gift. "I really love my cat and so I wanted pictures of him and I also didn’t have a Mother’s Day gift," Wroble, 21, told ABC News . "I was like, 'Oh, I have Groupon credit that expires
Boy Grows Hair for 2 Years, Donates to Friend With Alopecia
After two years of growing his hair, 10-year-old Tyler Boone was finally able to cut it -- as a gift for a family friend, Gabby, who's unable to grow her own. "She's gone through so much and I think just being a mom and seeing another young kid wanting to help and be a part of something caring and
Suspect in Road Rage Killing of 3-Year-Old Boy Said Car Was Following Too Close
The Arkansas man accused of killing a 3-year-old boy in an apparent road rage incident last week said he did so because he thought the driver of the Dodge Charger had been following him too closely, according to an affidavit released Friday following the suspect's arrest. Gary Holmes, 33, was


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- READ MORE: Pocketpair Inc’s CEO: “We don’t want ‘Palworld’ to be beautiful and perfect. We want to inject elements of darker themes, including exploitation and violence”
FromSoftware’s open-world action role-playing game is out today and according to Pocketpair’s CEO Takruo Mizobe, he believes staff will be “unable to focus on work”.
The company announced the “Elden Holiday” in a company wide email, which was later shared on Twitter.
— ポケットペア公式 – Craftopia/クラフトピア (@PocketpairJapan) February 22, 2022
Rumour has it that the Dragon Quest series is so popular in Japan, that developer Square Enix now releases its games on Saturdays to prevent kids from skipping school and adults from calling in sick to work to play the game.
And last year, Japanese tech developer Mark-On Ltd announced a ‘Monster Hunter Holiday’ for all non-executive employees to coincide with the launch of Monster Hunter Rise after CEO Masaki Hiyama received an overwhelming number of holiday requests for that day.
Elden Ring launched earlier today. Steam reviews for the PC version of the game are currently “mixed” due to performance issues and missing features.
Bandai Namco has since released a post about the issues in Elden Ring, stating that it is “constantly working to improve the game so that it can be played comfortably on various PC environments and platforms.”
In a five-star review of the game NME wrote: “Trying to summarise all of Elden Ring‘s successes, trying to pinpoint why it feels so special, is a gargantuan task. There’s a sublime open-world, and FromSoftware has made some incredibly innovative changes to its difficulty, but that’s not quite it.”
“Yes, there’s now an accessible plot and yes, the boss fights could rank as some of FromSoftware’s best. But that’s still not it. Elden Ring is Miyazaki’s masterpiece not because of any one improvement, but because it’s a towering sum of its parts. It’s been tens of hours since I first stepped foot into the Lands Between, and I still can’t quite believe how monumentally it delivers.”


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Digital India News
New India! Another big step towards Modi government's ambitious Digital India and Cashless Economy - Know details
Fri, Dec 06, 2019
Right from assuming PM office, Narendra Modi laid heavy emphasis on making India a Digital and Cashless Economy.
UIDAI alert! Now, update mobile number in Aadhaar Card without any document submission - Here is how
Thu, Dec 05, 2019
Aadhaar card holder? Want to update mobile number in Aadhaar? But, worried about documents? Now, you don't require any document submission to update mobile number in Aadhaar card, courtesy UIDAI.
Bus passengers alert! Yogi Adityanath government set to launch this massive benefit
Fri, Nov 29, 2019
Uttar Pradesh government led by CM Yogi Aditynath in sync with PM Narendra Modi-led Central government is giving a massive push to the ambitious Digital India movement.
Explained - With big push and support from Modi government, how digital payments are flourishing in India
Thu, Nov 14, 2019
Right from the time PM Narendra Modi came to power at the Centre after securing a landslide victory in 2014 Lok Sabha Elections, there has been a huge emphasis on 'Digital India' movement.
Children's Day Special! How Digital India program pushing online investment platforms is changing the education sector
Wed, Nov 13, 2019
Children's Day Special! Digital India programme is fast gaining traction among the Indian investors who want to save money for the education of their children.
BIG BOOST to Digital India Program! UPI crosses 1bn transactions in October 2019
Fri, Nov 01, 2019
Big Boost to Digital India: The NPCI has informed that the transactions of UPI have crossed the landmark figure of 1 billion in the month of October 2019.
BIG SHOT IN ARM! How Mastercard and MS Dhoni are realising this dream of PM Narendra Modi
Wed, Oct 16, 2019
PM Narendra Modi is known for taking many initiatives, and one such initiative is Cashless India.
This automotive lubricant company is offering Rs 6 crore monthly reward for customers, retailers
Tue, Sep 24, 2019
Castrol India Limited has announced its unique digital incentive platform — Castrol Fast Scan — for key stakeholders including mechanics and retailers has already reached 1.5 lakh users.
India looks to gain more than advanced countries from 5G
Mon, Sep 23, 2019
As India aims to launch 5G next year, the country hopes that deployment of this technology will advance the "Digital India" vision and promote inclusive growth by transforming several sectors including agriculture and health.
Boost to Digital Payments! India Post Payments Bank announces rollout of Aadhaar-enabled payment services
Mon, Sep 09, 2019
Boost to Digital Payments: The launch of AePS by India Post Payments Bank enhances the last mile interoperable banking infrastructure by 2.5 times.
Big relief for Paytm, PhonePe, Amazon Pay users! KYC deadline extended till February 2020
Mon, Sep 02, 2019
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has extended the deadline for KYC for mobile wallet account users from August 31st to February 29th 2020.
Your Paytm, PhonePay, Amazon Pay, other mobile wallet accounts could be blocked from September! Do this
Wed, Aug 28, 2019
Your Paytm, PhonePay, Amazon Pay and other mobile wallets may get blocked from September 1 if you fail to do the KYC by August 31st.
firstDigital Credit Card: Freecharge forays into Digital Credit Cards powered by Axis Bank
Wed, Aug 28, 2019
firstDigital Credit Card: Freecharge – one of the leading digital platforms for financial services, today announced the launch of its firstDigital Credit Card, powered by Axis Bank.
Mobile Wallet Payments: RBL Bank credit card holders can use Samsung Pay for contactless payments
Wed, Aug 28, 2019
Mobile Wallet Payments: RBL Bank’s Mastercard credit cardholders can make contactless transactions with their Samsung Pay-compatible smartphones.
Digital India, Digital Payments to ensure people can benefit more from technology in rural areas: Anurag Thakur
Fri, Jul 26, 2019
Anurag Thakur said that by applying Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) and Aadhaar-linked Payments (ALP), the government has reduced delays in the payment of wages, curbed corruption and plugged up any leakages in the system.
Boom time for digital trade: Rs 3,33,10,00 crore opportunity seen for India by 2030!
Thu, Jul 25, 2019
Digital trade is likely to create Rs Rs 3,331 thousand crore ( Rs 3,33,10,00 crore) economic opportunity for India by 2030.
Insurance and other products may get delivered at your doorstep! Learn why
Mon, Jul 15, 2019
With the phenomenal growth registered by India's online shopping industry, customers are now buying insurance policies, mortgages and much more at the click of a button.
SBI charges on IMPS, NEFT, RTGS waived off! Transactions free now! Big relief for users from this Digital India push
Fri, Jul 12, 2019
SBI charges on RTGS and NEFT for YONO, internet banking (INB) and mobile banking (MB) customers have been waived off from July 1, 2019.
Budget 2019: Cheque bounce to cashless transactions, 5 announcements FM may make to boost Digital India campaign
Wed, Jul 03, 2019
Budget 2019: To push PM Narendra Modi's Digital India campaign, which is one of the most ambitious programmes of the government, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is expected to make these announcements while presenting the budget.
Digital India empowered people, reduced corruption: Modi
Mon, Jul 01, 2019
Calling the Digital India initiative a "people`s movement", Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said it has empowered people, significantly reduced corruption and improved public service delivery to benefit the poor.


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Ticketing fiasco may have been completely sidestepped if the organizing committee considered smartphones.
Empty seats at several venues at the Olympics created significant public frustration that may have been avoided if mobile commerce had been used to help sell leftover tickets.
A proper smartphone strategy might have been all that was needed to fill the stands.
Hundreds of unsold tickets for various events at the 2012 Olympic venues in London are now being sold online as organizers attempt to shrink the problem that has threatened to make an otherwise very successful experience into an exasperating trial.
At the center of the struggles has been a worsening of the problem at the Locog ticket site, which is the only location where tickets may be legally purchased. That website has been experiencing deleted orders and all-out crashes as it has been swamped by visitors.
Many believe that a mobile commerce would have been enough to completely avoid this issue.
Ticketing is always a central element of the Olympics, no matter what year or location. Since they first started being sold for this year’s events, there has been talk of various challenges throughout the sales process, as well as a significant amount of confusion regarding the allocation of the tickets.
Now that the games have arrived, the issue is back at full force. Many smartphone and tablet owners are shocked at the lack of dedicated mobile commerce strategy in order to sell tickets. Especially considering the stunning tribute to the importance of smartphones in the city as depicted in the opening ceremonies. With such an obvious recognition of the importance of these devices, it is certainly surprising that they have not received more focus in terms of the practical Olympic experience.
What makes this even more remarkable is that mobile commerce has been playing a part in ticketing for quite some time now. Though 2012 has seen record breaking uses of the technique, it has been successfully implemented by many companies around the world for several years, including for concert tickets, movies, and even public transit. This has given the technology more than enough time to be tested in order to be used reliably for the Olympics, potentially avoiding all of the online crashes and negative experiences that are now occurring.
For more mobile commerce headlines.


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On Friday, millions of consumers found they couldn't reach Netflix, Amazon, Twitter, and a handful of other major web destinations.
The reason, we are told, is that hackers unleashed a massive denial-of-service (DoS) attack against these sites that overwhelmed their common DNS provider, Dyn. We now know how they did it, and it should serve as a warning of more cyber chaos to come.
According to a statement from Dyn, released over the weekend, the sites were simultaneously hit with requests for access by tens of millions of IP addresses. But how could hackers in some remote location do that?
Simple: they infected tens of millions of electronic devices – things like printers, thermostats, and other ordinary devices that now connect to the internet – the so-called Internet of Things (IoT). Each of these devices has its own IP address, just like a computer.
A simple botnet coordinated the attack
Dyn says its preliminary investigation has shown that many of the devices had been infected with a malware called Mirai, a botnet.
“We observed tens of millions of discrete IP addresses associated with the Mirai botnet that were part of the attack,” Dyn said in its statement.
As for the timeline, Dyn said the first attack was launched around 7:00 a.m. ET. Dyn’s Network Operations Center (NOC) was able to overcome the attack after about two hours and restore service. The first attack impacted mostly the East Coast.
A second attack occurred around Noon ET and affected the entire country. This time it took about an hour to restore service.
Third attack failed
Dyn says there was a third attack, but because its personnel were ready for it, they were able to mitigate it without a disruption of service.
So what's the big take away from Friday's confusion? As Fortune observes, the devices that allowed the attack to happen are still out there, still connected to the internet, and as far as anyone knows, not repaired or patched. There's nothing to say hackers couldn't do it again if they wanted to.
Fortune quotes security researcher Brian Krebs as saying the companies that make IoT devices are mostly to blame for the vulnerability, charging that printers, cameras, and routers are not protected by adequate security.
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Critical Right To Repair Hearing Set For Monday And Massachusetts Is The Battleground
The right to repair movement is about to get a much needed boost. The Massachusetts state legislature plans to host a public hearing regarding their “Digital Right to Repair” bills. Many anticipate that this will be the largest hearing in support of this kind of legislation.
Many have argued that the policies of large tech companies have hurt consumers and small businesses. The proposed legislation would “establish fair and reasonable terms for providing diagnostic, service or repair information and services for digital electronic products.” Manufacturers would also be prohibited from installing software on a device that would prevent it from being repaired by a third-party. The pair of bills would ultimately allow consumers to choose where to repair their device.
The bills have enjoyed wide support in the Massachusetts state legislature. The House of Representatives and the Senate have both approved the same bills. They are also co-sponsored by 76 representatives in the House and 27 representatives in the Senate.
The hearing will be held on Monday, October 21st from 1pm to 4pm EST. It will be hosted in the Gardner Auditorium at the State House on Beacon Hill. The auditorium can hold up to 600 people, which would make this largest hearing on a right to repair bill in the United States. The hearing will be attended by legislatures, members of the public, and lobbyists that represent manufacturing companies. The Eventbrite listing for the event states, “Company lobbyists representing the manufacturers will be there in spades, so if we want lawmakers to side with the public, we need to show up.”
These right to repair bills could potentially have an immense impact on national legislation and application. Massachusetts also passed an automobile right to repair law in 2014; the auto industry decided to honor and apply this law nationwide. Although proponents have been fighting for federal legislation for years, it may not be necessary if the tech industry follows the example of the auto industry.
A handful of companies have begun to listen to the concerns of their consumers -- or at least feel pressure from potential legislation. Apple recently promised to expand the availability of their genuine replacement hardware and supporting tools to a greater number of independent shops. Although these shops will need to apply to gain access to these tools, it is a step in the right direction.
Apple’s policy change was rather unexpected. The company is notorious for fighting independent shops and third-party manufacturers. This past summer, Apple decided to sue the owner of PCKompaniet over components that he purchased to replace in iPhone 6 and iPhone 6S smartphones. It will be interesting to see whether the Massachusetts legislation will pass and if other tech companies will follow Apple’s example.


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Matt is the former News Editor for The Next Web. You can follow him on Twitter, subscribe to his updates on Facebook and catch up with him Matt is the former News Editor for The Next Web. You can follow him on Twitter, subscribe to his updates on Facebook and catch up with him on Google+.
If you thought there was a chance of getting your favourite Beatles tracks via an MP3 store instead of a remastered CD, Yoko Ono has poured a little more water on your bonfire.
When asked whether Beatles tracks would go on sale via online retailers such as iTunes; Yoko Ono, one of three other Beatles stakeholders including Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and Olivia Harrison (widow of George Harrison) put an end to speculation with an unequivocal “Don’t hold your breath … for anything.”
Apple has had a rocky history with Apple Corps, the music groups holding company, over rights to the name. That trademark dispute came to an end in 2007 and from then speculation was rife about an iTunes deal, until now.
It all comes down to Apple Corps’ inability to agree terms with EMI Group, licensee of the Beatle’s back catalog.
“(Apple CEO) Steve Jobs has his own idea and he’s a brilliant guy,” Ono, the 77-year-old widow of John Lennon, told Reuters. “There’s just an element that we’re not very happy about, as people. We are holding out.
It’s a shame that the current music generation won’t be able to give back to the group that created so many hit songs. Instead of going to buy their CD’s, we fear the original artists will miss out as downloaders will look to download their entire back catalog via file sharing websites or Bittorrent.
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Our recent exploration of the rise in independent distilleries highlighted key changes in consumer behaviour and a surge in the trend of craft spirits, such as gin and whiskey, as significant drivers for the industry. As gin distributors, we have taken a closer look at some of the current gin trends in 2018, to see where your customer will be wanting to try next.
Tanqueray producers, Diageo Reserve, put the gin ‘renaissance’ down to the simple fact that the versatile spirit lends itself to so many botanical combinations, creating interesting flavours and products. Tanqueray themselves launched Tanqueray Flor de Sevilla this year, whilst last summer saw a craze for pink gin thanks to a product drop by Gordon’s, all in a bid to stay ahead of the market.
This combination of new products and flavours also fuels the ongoing social movement around Instagram, helping to leverage some brands as more desirable than others based on appearance and differentiation and creating a new form of demand.
Premium labels vs. the discount brand
Discount supermarkets, Aldi and Lidl, have been driving forces where own-brand spirits are concerned. 2017 saw their own labels leading the way and it seems 2018 is no different, with Aldi’s £10 bottle beating Heston Blumenthal’s £25 Waitrose collaboration at a blind tasting, as part of the International Wine and Spirit Competition.
Also jumping on the flavoured gin trend, Aldi have released competitive products that
quickly make the news due to much smaller price tags.
As we touched upon in our last piece, for many consumers it’s the overall experience around product consumption that drives decision making, which is why non-alcoholic spirits like Seedlip are doing so well. With its own distinct flavour profiles and similar versatility to gin, mixologists can showcase their skills in the same way that demonstrates the craft to consumers – and they still make a great Instagram post, too.
Seasonality affecting behaviour
Two of the most talked about occurrences this year will have undoubtedly influenced our consumption of spirits this year: the World Cup and the recent UK heatwave. During the quarter-final week alone, sales of alcohol in the UK totalled a staggering £287m, whilst the ongoing heatwave has bolstered the population’s taste for gin as a coolant.
What can we expect from gin in 2019?
With so much going on in 2018, it doesn’t seem like the gin trend will falter any time soon. At CSS On Trade, we expect to see a lot more variation from producers in terms of diversifying their range and will also be keeping our eye on the non-alcoholic spirit market as it seems that, for now, it’s here to stay.
If you are considering stocking a variety of locally produced spirits, get in touch to talk to us about your requirements. We are based in Hampshire, Surrey and Sussex, and are experts in what your customers want – enquire for our products list, and a member of our team will be happy to talk you through how we can help.


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The China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) has revealed that the company has launched businesses in 29 states since it started operating in Nigeria 40 years ago.
Speaking at the launch of the company’s Corporate Social Responsibility Report (1981-2020), the Chairman and Managing Director of CCECC Nigeria Limited, Jiang Yigao, said the company entered the Nigerian market in 1981 as its first overseas market.
“We help Nigeria create high-quality infrastructure projects and provide quality services to local areas, and continue to deepen China-Nigeria cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiation,” he said.
The Deputy Managing Director of the company, Mr. Han Shuang, said Nigeria has proven to be “a truly reliable partner” and CCECC is willing to support the prosperity and development of Nigeria.
Shuang said the company employs and trains thousands of local staff in line with its principle of localised development.
“We will continue to remain a true friend and good partner of Nigeria and contribute to the sustainable economic and social development of Nigeria,” he said.
Nigerians can now earn US Dollars by acquiring premium domain names, most clients earn about $7,000 to $10,000, all paid in US Dollars. Click here to learn how to start.


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Debra Cobb reports from New Orleans
The Smart Fabrics Program and E-Textiles Workshop at the IFAI EXPO in New Orleans, which ran September 26 – 29, took a hard look at smart fabric development and commercialisation.
The Smart Fabrics Track was part of the Expo’s Advanced Textiles Conference and included lectures, roundtable discussions, and exhibits that examined both the challenges and opportunities for the development and commercialization of smart fabrics.
The cool factor may not be enough
“Smart fabrics need to be more than ‘cool technology,’ according to Laurie Mease, trade specialist for the US Department of Commerce/Office of Textiles and Apparel (OTEXA). “They need to fulfil an unmet need, and provide a solution.”
Case in point: two years in development, the Levi’s® Commuter™ Trucker jacket recently went on sale, featuring touch controls woven into the cuff which allow the wearer to receive phone calls, navigate, or play music without getting your cell phone out of your pocket. Developed in conjunction with Google’s Advanced Technology and Projects Group (ATAP), the jacket sells for USD$350, and can only be washed ten times before the circuitry is damaged (according to The Guardian).
The jacket’s touch-sensitive denim fabric, woven with conductive threads containing a copper core, allows you to communicate wirelessly with your phone via a detachable Bluetooth dongle. But while the jacket will appeal to cool-hunters, does it really answer a consumer need?
While Mease put the world market for smart textiles at USD$2.75bn in 2016, (USD$1.67bn in the US alone), it’s possible that much of the hype is unjustified. In fact, some presenters described smart textiles as being in “The Trough of Disillusionment” on the Gartner Hype Cycle, a graphed representation of technology development and adoption developed by the Gartner Research technology and advisory firm.
Jesse Jur, associate professor, Department of Textile Engineering, Chemistry and Science (TECS) at the College of Textiles, North Carolina State University, believes “Providers of wearables are generally not meeting expectations set by the media, and are no longer buoyed by hype.”
“No one in this industry is making any money because there is not yet a market need,” he continued. Jur believes that the best use-cases for smart textiles lie in the health care market, where standards and reliability are critical.
“The words ‘wearable tech’ will go away,” stated Ben Cooper, managing director of IOClothes, who nevertheless believes that the future of apparel, footwear, and textiles is tied into the development of the Internet of Things (IoT).
Cooper’s company is focused on being a catalyst in bridging the gap between technology and textiles. “The two industries do not speak the same language,” he said.
The textile infrastructure
While the textile value chain is long-established, the traditional manufacturing scenario does not necessarily work well for smart fabrics and e-textiles. “What we are doing now is merging two industries. We need to have a conversation,” insisted Eva Osborne, VP research and innovation for smart textile incubator Significant Difference, and lead E-Textiles Workshop host at the IFAI EXPO.
Connie Huffa, whose firm Fabdesigns develops performance and smart fabrics for footwear, military, medical, and aerospace clients, explained that smart textiles need to be designed from the polymer forward. “We build the fabric along with the product.” She also cited a need for knitting machines that can produce the innovative structures required to design smart products.
Judging by the exhibitors in the Expo’s Advanced Textiles Sector, some of the textile value chain is getting the message.
Conductive yarns and threads from Marubeni Electro-Yarn and Supreme Corporation’s VOLT Apache yarns can be incorporated in textile substrates to provide conductivity. Variation in materials, including copper, stainless steel, silver, or carbon, as well as with metallization technologies, allow the properties of such yarns to be fine-tuned, according to McDermid Enthone Industrial Solutions.
While conductive threads can be knit, woven, sewn, or embroidered into textile substrates, printed textile circuits using electronic inks or pastes are said to hold great potential. DuPont Intexa™ screen printable inks of silver, carbon, or silver-chloride can be placed on TPU film in intricate patterns, then laminated to the fabric to create pathways to a circuit. The resulting e-textile is super flat, light weight and stretchable.
As for textile machinery, Stoll’s Performance+ collection illustrated the capabilities of its recently developed CMS ADF technology. The flat-bed knitting machine’s 3D shaping, goring, weave-in and selective plating applications enable the precise placement of conductive yarns, chips, and battery pockets into fully-fashioned performance knitwear, along with the body-mapping of mesh and compressive structures.
The STOLL machine CMS ADF 32W technology has been chosen by the Advanced Textiles Research Group at Nottingham Trent University, led by Professor Tilak Dias, for future research and development.
“The ability to create e-textiles using computerized flat-bed knitting technology, such as STOLL CMS ADF 32W, would influence the textile value chain,” said Dias.
Machines are also at the heart of Gehring-Tricot’s success, with a full spectrum of warp and weft knit and stretch weaving machines, along with the company’s willingness to adapt to non-traditional applications through yarn and structure innovation.
“We are seeing more customers looking for textile matrices to support their e-textile development,” claimed Bill Christmann, VP sales and marketing for the company, based in New York State and Fall River, Massachusetts.
The fine print
The development of standards and IP protection for smart textiles have many in the industry perplexed. Washability, consumer safety, sustainability and the reliability of medical and military technology are critical issues.
“Designers just want to jump in—but it’s not that simple,” Huffa pointed out. “Some designers want to put copper fibres right into fabric. Electronics can do things to your immune system, and graphene is toxic to the body.” In addition, e-textiles may not be recyclable, with batteries adding toxicity.
The American Association of Textile chemists and Colorists (AATCC), ASTM International, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and the Association Connecting Electronics Industries (IPC) have begun to grapple with the problem.
“We need effective and appropriate safety standards. Some issues will be physical safety, some issues will be privacy,” remarked Gerry Elman, president of Elman Technology Law. However, he added, “There’s great reluctance to impose requirements on new technologies, for fear of stifling them.”
In addition, Elman pointed out that patent law can be very difficult, particularly in partnerships between industries as diverse as textiles and technology.
Getting past the unknown
The successful commercialisation of smart textiles relies on finding a need, enabling the textile infrastructure and electrical components to work together, and establishing appropriate standards.
Despite the challenges, smart fabrics and e-textiles may provide stimulus for a tired textile industry churning out commodity fabrics at pennies per metre. Beyond current developments for military and first responders, medical and health care, and sports and fitness lie untold opportunities in mass transit, industrial and commercial end uses, energy harvesting, and smart mechanical textiles.
“Textiles are ubiquitous,” declared Cooper. “There are two ways of looking at innovation: incremental, and disruptive. We are so poised for a breakthrough.”
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FORTUNE Life president Arnold Cabangon; Fortune Life executive vice president Evelyn Carada; Education Secretary Armin Luistro; Fortune Life chair and founder Ambassador Antonio Cabangon Chua; Marylinbert president and CEO Linda Legaspi and husband Albert Rosal
Big business gives to Visayas, Mindanao schoolchildren
Fortune Life recently marked the second anniversary of its advocacy, “The Value of Hard Work and Discipline.”
The trés charmant Ambassador Antonio Cabangon Chua, chair and founder of Fortune Life, and Evelyn Carada, EVP and GM, welcomed the invitees led by Education Secretary Armin Luistro and Undersecretary Yolanda Quijano.
“I am extremely happy to see that my former student back in La Salle, Arnold Cabangon, now the president of Fortune Life, is walking the talk on hard work and discipline, inspiring students to persevere and save for their future,” said Luistro.
Recognition was given to five “exceptionally good advocacy implementors,” who showed their support and complete dedication to the program: Amcy Esteban, Benzon German, Rosanilia Saludo, Lino Inovero and Edna Madrid, all educators.
Head-turner Jessa Zaragoza, wearing an electric-blue terno, stole the spotlight with her rendition of “Pangako,” Fortune Life’s signature song, written by Chit Mijares-Chua of ABC Productions, palanggas. The song is supposed to embody the company’s “strong commitment of excellent service to all its policyholders.”
Receiving a standing ovation was Arnold, who expressed commitment to continue distributing for free some 45,000 activity books to selected schools in Visayas and Mindanao, dahlings.
He was followed by his brother Jun Cabangon who said that Fortune Line will be holding small gatherings where our top couturiers, beauty queens and fashion stylists will be giving lessons and seminars on personality development and makeovers for educators and teachers.
Marylindbert president and CEO Linda Legaspi and husband, lawyer Albert Rosal, were there, too. “Now, isn’t this putting a big heart in the heart of success… Fortune Life’s real key to its fortune!’” said Linda.
We totally agree. Bravo!
Feast of accessories
“Objets D’ Art” was a trés exclusive one-day-only must-see happening that was the brainchild of highly respected accessory designers Nicole Whisenhunt and Malou Romero.
Held at One Rockwell Tower’s East Function Room, it showcased the country’s “most desirable and fanciful objects by a wide range of talented artists that embody culture, style and originality,” as its handlers said.
This annual event is a brilliant effort to encourage growth in the Philippine design industry. “It supports local artists in the fields of jewelry, furniture and the arts,” explained Celine Gabriel Lim, one of the featured designers. Together with her design partner, Gabriel Martel, she has been making waves in New York’s fashion world with her brand Andrea Martel, no less, dahlings.
Alongside the talented designers, there were contemporary visual artists that exhibited their work: Maxine Syjuco (photographs and paintings) and Jia Santos Estrella (hand-painted furniture).
In fact, one of the main highlights was the exhibit of the art gallery Artinformal, which presented sculptures, paintings, pottery, light boxes, and loads of other forms of artwork by Erwin Leano, Wesley Valenzuela, Jonas Eslao, Dan Raralio, John Santos, Marina Cruz, Sandra Fabie-Gfeller, palanggas.
Pure luxury and refinement has always been the essence of world-renowned brand, Tod’s, dahlings.
For the new season, the Tod’s Signature Collection was presented during a very light and healthy lunch at the awesome presidential suite of the Peninsula Manila.
Stylish Flora Lee, senior PR associate of Tod’s for the Asia-Pacific, jetted in from Hong Kong for the launch.
On the runway, models displayed Tod’s classic semi-opaque nappa, shiny calfskin and ultra-soft sheep skin with a suede effect in different shapes and sizes: the iconic shoulder bag, a portfolio clutch, a small trunk style, a two-size shopper, a bauletto, a soft envelope clutch and a pochette.
Romanza II exhibit
Multitalented personality Marivic Rufino’s new painting series, “Romanza II,” consisting of luminous, exquisite dreamscapes, was unveiled to hearty applause at the Peninsula Manila Gallery, dahlings.
The artist’s 17th solo exhibit was originally presented by the Philippine Embassy in Spain in Museo de Antropologia in Madrid last June to celebrate José Rizal’s 150th birth anniversary. Now the exhibit is being shown to Cosmo Manille art lovers and collectors.
The new series featured another dimension of Rufino’s art: “experimental collages in shimmering new artworks inspired by Spain, and a kind soft art: screen divider, furniture, butterflies bags, pillows and delicate lamps,” Marivic said at the opening of her show.
Guests of honor were Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario; National Artist for the Visual Arts Arturo Luz and National Artist for Literature Virgilio S. Almario; international artists Juvenal Sansó and Betsy Westendorp; and Washington Sycip. Members of the diplomatic corps were also present, natch!
Proceeds of the art show will go to the St. Mary’s House in Tagaytay.


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MANILA, Philippines - Andrew Tan-led Alliance Global Group Inc. (AGI), which is investing heavily in the tourism sector, plans to add four more hotels at the Resorts World Manila in Pasay City in the next five years.
In a statement, AGI said these will bring to seven the number of hotels in the integrated entertainment complex that will have an aggregate room count of 2,800 and accommodate around 600,000 foreign and local visitors.
"Resorts World Manila is a game changer. No other tourism development has been developed in the same breadth and scale. We are breaking new ground and we hope that other investors will join us in investing in the country’s tourism sector, where the potential is vast and the opportunities to create an impact on our economy is great," said Tan, AGI's chairman.
Resort World, which is run by AGI's subsidiary Travellers International Hotel Group Inc., features a casino and other leisure and shopping centers on a portion of the 25-hectare New Port City, adjacent to the Villamor golf course and across the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3.
Among the hotels in the area are the six-star Maxims Tower, the five-star Marriott Hotel and budget hotel Remington Hotel. By next month, Resorts World will host a total of 1,226 hotel rooms spread out over the three brands.
Tan said AGI's planned expansion is in line with the government's efforts to boost the tourism sector, with the target of attracting at least 6.5 million foreign arrivals and generating about $7 billion earnings by 2016.
"We are extremely bullish about the prospects of the tourism industry. We have committed substantial resources to build up our capacity and be a major player in this sector," said Tan.
"The tourism industry is one of the country's key economic drivers and therefore, the private sector needs to step in and invest alongside the government," he added.
Before the year ends, AGI said Travellers will unveil plans for a second tourism estate— the 31-hectare Resorts World Bayshore in the Entertainment City Manila.
"We have a very exciting concept for our Resorts World Bayshore project, one we believe will be very appealing to tourists. We are creating a full range of attractions that people from all over the world will want to see and experience for themselves."
Meanwhile, another AGI subsidiary, Globe-Estate Resorts Inc., is developing a P15-billion resort hotel project in Boracay that will offer at least 2,500 rooms.


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Sony India has announced the launch of a new PS4 Slim bundle in the country. The company has been quite aggressive with their launches in India lately, and this new one comes shortly after the launch of their PS4 Slim Limited Edition Gold and Silver consoles. That being said, the new bundle is a welcome addition to the existing line-up.
The newly announced PS4 Slim bundle comes with three games, i.e., God of War 3 Remastered, Horizon Zero Dawn and Uncharted 4. And in addition to the games, this 500GB PS4 Slim bundle also comes with three months of PlayStation Plus which is indeed a nice touch.
This new bundle joins the roster of bundles that are available in the country. Sony is already selling the FIFA 18 bundle, and there’s yet another three-game bundle which includes Driveclub, Horizon Zero Dawn, Ratchet, and Clank.
Considering the fact that Sony isn’t selling the PS4 Pro in India just yet, this might lure a lot of potential customers. That being said, the bundle indeed offers a great deal. All the included game in the bundle are priced well above 3,000 INR. And even though you may find a good deal for the games online, the bundle offers better value for money.
With a 28,990 INR price tag, the new PS4 Slim bundle is a great place to start if you’re looking for something more powerful than a PS3. Talking about the availability, the bundle is available via select retailers both online as well offline.
It is also worth making a note that 2018 is going to be a great year for PS4 gamers. With much-anticipated exclusive titles such as God of War 4, the new Spiderman, etc. slated to release in a few months, it is expected that Sony will bring more bundles to the Indian market.


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Love for Vietnam: Where it all begins...
|Vietnamese coffee Coffilia's exhibition stand at a Fair in Kuwait. (Photo: Coffilia)
Launched during Kuwait's season peak for outdoor activities, Mr. Luai Alqattan's Coffilia coffee shop has gained more visibility on social media and garnered positive responses from customers.
From a farm in Vietnam's Northwest...
As an enthusiast of Vietnamese culture and products, Mr. Luai Alqattan, desiring to bring Vietnamese products to Kuwait, fortuitously met Mr. Nguyen Minh Thang, the CEO of Coffilia Coffee Company, at an event.
Given that the people of Kuwait spent over 236 million USD on coffee in 2022, entering the coffee business seems to be a lucrative opportunity, one that Mr. Luai has embraced. His interactions with the Coffilia team and research into Vietnamese coffee led him to visit their coffee farm in Son La province.
“Witnessing the coffee cultivation, harvesting, and production processes made me believe in Coffilia's potential to captivate Kuwaiti consumers,” said Mr. Luai. “After that visit, Coffilia and I signed a cooperation agreement, initiating Coffilia's venture into the Gulf region.”
Exporting the Vietnamese coffee brand has always been a key strategic goal for Coffilia. The unique dynamics of the Gulf market, particularly Kuwait, have made the collaboration with Mr. Luai more intriguing and fruitful.
Mr. Thang shared that the partnership with Mr. Luai in developing the Coffilia brand has become more effective over time, thanks to open communication, whether through messages or in-person meetings. Through Mr. Luai, Mr. Thang and his team gained insights into the Kuwaiti coffee market, while Mr. Luai's understanding of coffee shop operations was enhanced by Coffilia's expertise.
Coffilia’s Signage Being Installed in Kuwait Before the Café’s Opening. (Photo: Coffilia)
…to final agreement in Kuwait
Initially, Mr. Luai Alqattan helped distribute Coffilia's coffee in Kuwait through order placements. His clients highly appreciated the Vietnamese coffee brand and expressed eagerness for a Coffilia café in this Gulf country.
Following the Horeca Fair in March 2023 - a significant event for the restaurant, hotel, and café industry in Kuwait - the demand became more pronounced. Several locations were considered for the first Coffilia café in Kuwait, eventually selecting the Al-Kout Beach Hotel, located near Mahboula, a neighborhood with a significant Vietnamese expatriate community.
Situated along the scenic east coast of Kuwait, the Al-Kout Beach Hotel is an ideal location, given Mr. Luai's expertise in providing services for hotel and outdoor events.
The official agreement for the Coffilia café venture between Coffilia and Mr. Luai Alqattan as a legal entity was signed on September 24, 2023. One month later, the grand opening of Coffilia was warmly received by many Kuwaiti citizens and international friends. For coffee enthusiasts, experiencing the taste of Vietnam was a joyful occasion. Currently, the café operates seven days a week, from 7 AM to 11 PM, with a steady flow of customers.
Seizing the opportunity during Kuwait's peak season for outdoor activities, Mr. Luai Alqattan has actively participated in fairs and exhibitions to promote the brand among Kuwaitis. Familiar Vietnamese coffee varieties like Bac Xiu, iced milk coffee, and salted coffee are gradually adapted to local tastes, using Coffilia's coffee beans.
|Mr. Luai Alqattan at the Coffilia Café in Kuwait. (Photo: Coffilia)
Mutually beneficial relationships and successes
Reflecting on the journey, Mr. Luai Alqattan is deeply moved. He is now learning more Vietnamese phrases to better serve his Vietnamese customers and is planning to expand the brand by opening more outlets. For Coffilia, the first café has provided significant momentum to accelerate their international expansion plans under the leadership of CEO Nguyen Minh Thang and his team.
Mr. Luai Alqattan is not the only one keen on introducing Vietnamese cuisine to Kuwait. Locals can now enjoy traditional Vietnamese dishes like spring rolls, fried rolls, and pho at Republique restaurant, located in the heart of Kuwait City. Moving forward, through cultural diplomacy activities, the Vietnamese Embassy and Trade Office in Kuwai continue to explore opportunities to introduce more signature Vietnamese dishes to the local population.
Above all, these "sweet fruits" are born out of a deep affection for Vietnam, as Mr. Luai once shared: "To effectively promote Vietnam, we should start with those who have genuinely experienced the country. Once we identify a group that shares this affection for Vietnam, the task of promotion becomes much easier.”


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What you need to know
- Apple CEO Tim Cook confirmed the Apple Card will launch in August.
- The Apple Card is being billed as a "new kind of credit card."
- The news was dropped during Apple's Q3 2019 earnings call.
We still don't have an exact date, but Apple CEO Tim Cook said the Apple Card will be available in August on a limited basis, confirming recent reports. Cook announced the news during Apple's Q3 2019 earnings call.
The Apple Card is being billed by Apple as a "new kind of credit card" designed to help consumers "lead a healthier financial life." The card will live in the Wallet app on your iPhone and offers no annual fees along with enticing rewards, including 3% cash-back on purchases made directly from Apple.
"Apple Card is designed to help customers lead a healthier financial life, which starts with a better understanding of their spending so they can make smarter choices with their money, transparency to help them understand how much it will cost if they want to pay over time and ways to help them pay down their balance," said Jennifer Bailey, Apple's Vice President of Apple Pay.
Although Apple Card is geared more toward digital living, Apple will also provide users with a minimalistic titanium card that features laser etched engravings. One of the big differences is that the physical Apple Card won't feature any numbers, CVV security code, signature, or expiration date.
A previous report claimed the Apple Card would be available in the first half of August, so it won't be much longer before you can apply.
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The second quarter brought a doubling of podcast ad revenue compared to a year earlier for iHeartMedia and CEO Bob Pittman says last week’s acquisition of Voxnest will allow the company to “deepen the monetization” of its podcast business. In an interview with CNBC, Pittman said iHeart has already been able to leverage its radio business to promote podcasts into hits, and the combination of its radio sales force with ad tech acquired from Voxnest will help strengthen its position in the audio ad market.
“While some people are still struggling for profitability in podcasting, we actually have a profit margin that’s better than the overall company margin,” said Pittman. “It’s been a great business for us and shows no signs of abating.”
On Friday, iHeartMedia announced it would go from a minority shareholder in Voxnest to buy the company outright. The deal gives iHeart the monetization platform Dynamo and ad tech capabilities including dynamic ad insertion, audience and content targeting, programmatic podcast buying across all audio sales platforms, and a full podcast analytics platform. The company said it expects that additional inventory coming from the Voxnest Audio Network will increase the monetization across a range of podcasts benefitting both ad buyers and sellers. iHeart said it will also be able to drive greater monetization for creators of podcast content – wherever they currently publish their shows – by connecting Voxnest’s advanced ad technology with multiple publishing platforms across the industry.
Pittman said the growth of new consumer electronic platform products such as smart TVs and smart speakers has allowed iHeart to “substantially” increase the use of its digital audio services in the home. “I hate to say there is any good news about COVID, but if there is any, it’s that people being at home let them discover these new platforms for radio and podcasts and all of our audio products,” he told CNBC. “We see in podcasting, when people stay at home more, podcast listening doesn’t go down. But what they listen to changes and having a broad array of podcasts has been very helpful to us.”
The company is scheduled to release its third quarter revenue numbers on Nov. 9. Pittman did not offer hints at current trends, but he said 2020 has been a year of adjustments for marketers. “It is no secret Q2 was not a good quarter for advertising,” he said. “Advertisers wanted to figure out a message to say in times like this, and how do they effectively reach the consumer. The great news about radio and our core business is that it is probably one of the most efficient ways to reach consumers – and for our company, we have a reach larger than any of the TV folks and larger that Google or Facebook in the U.S.”
As podcasting and other digital products are added to the mix, Pittman said they are talking less to ad buyers about a specific “silo” and more about the multiplatform possibilities they can offer. “It is really the future of the audio business,” he said.


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Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL – Get Rating) had its price target reduced by Barclays from $144.00 to $133.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday, The Fly reports. The brokerage presently has an “equal weight” rating on the iPhone maker’s stock. Barclays‘s price target points to a potential downside of 0.31% from the company’s previous close.
Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $170.00 target price on shares of Apple in a research report on Tuesday, November 8th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Apple from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 20th. Wedbush decreased their target price on shares of Apple from $200.00 to $175.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 4th. DA Davidson cut their target price on shares of Apple to $167.00 in a report on Thursday, December 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Apple from $177.00 to $175.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $171.93.
Apple Trading Down 0.1 %
Shares of AAPL stock opened at $133.41 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $139.41 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $148.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.88. Apple has a 52-week low of $124.17 and a 52-week high of $179.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.12 trillion, a PE ratio of 21.83, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.24.
Insider Transactions at Apple
In other news, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 8,053 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.45, for a total transaction of $1,147,149.85. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 136,290 shares in the company, valued at $19,414,510.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Apple news, CFO Luca Maestri sold 176,299 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.95, for a total value of $27,493,829.05. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 110,673 shares in the company, valued at $17,259,454.35. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Deirdre O’brien sold 8,053 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.45, for a total value of $1,147,149.85. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 136,290 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,414,510.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 204,552 shares of company stock worth $31,645,123. Insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apple
Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Wealthspire Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Apple by 42.8% during the second quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 299,829 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $40,993,000 after buying an additional 89,865 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Apple by 8.3% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 74,619 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $13,029,000 after acquiring an additional 5,703 shares in the last quarter. Emerald Advisors LLC boosted its position in Apple by 2.4% during the second quarter. Emerald Advisors LLC now owns 19,905 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $2,721,000 after purchasing an additional 465 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC grew its stake in Apple by 35.7% in the second quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 25,608 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock valued at $3,501,000 after purchasing an additional 6,735 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Callan Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Apple by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Callan Capital LLC now owns 85,226 shares of the iPhone maker’s stock worth $11,652,000 after purchasing an additional 1,322 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.60% of the company’s stock.
Apple Company Profile
Apple Inc designs, manufactures, and markets smartphones, personal computers, tablets, wearables, and accessories worldwide. It also sells various related services. In addition, the company offers iPhone, a line of smartphones; Mac, a line of personal computers; iPad, a line of multi-purpose tablets; and wearables, home, and accessories comprising AirPods, Apple TV, Apple Watch, Beats products, and HomePod.
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TATA group chief Mr Ratan Tata has said by 2020 TATA Motors should be more mature and have the capability to develop products with reliability, finish and technology as it may still be sub-scale by international standards at present.
In an interview to market research firm JD Power's report on Indian automobile industry, Mr Tata said the homegrown auto major wants to bring in world-class products in the next decade to meet customers needs.
He said that "I think we have economies of scale in some of the segments in which we operate, but on the whole, we may still be sub-scale by international standards. My aim for Tata Motors is that we should have the capability of developing good automobiles in terms of reliability, finish and technology.”
Mr Tata in ''India Automotive 2020: The Next Giant from Asia'' said that the company's endeavor to develop products with better technology has been hampered by the abnormally high prices of critical components such as automatic transmissions.
The company is also finding it economically unviable to import the crucial components, which are not easily available in India, because of very high customs duty.
Mr Tata added that "So we have to keep on developing these components ourselves, which is very time consuming and is not our core business. We want to bring in world-class products and have been working hard to improve the build quality and reliability of our vehicles.”
For this purpose, TATA favored cutting import duties on vehicles and components coming from overseas. Mr Tata said that "If the tariff barriers go down, we may have the luxury of buying a product to fill the gap in our range, and not develop a product, which is very expensive and wasteful for us.”
He hoped that by 2020 TATA Motors should be a more mature company with better products, newer technology and wider range of products to suit customers' needs.
Sourced from PTI


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Linus Henze, the talented hacker behind the Fugu15 jailbreak for arm64e devices running iOS & iPadOS 15.0-15.4.1, just this week shared a proof of concept (PoC) for a security vulnerability dubbed CVE-2023-28206 that Apple fixed with the release of iOS & iPadOS 16.4.1.
Henze announced his PoC bright and early Monday morning via Twitter, shown above, where he linked to a GitHub page showing off his methodology and the result.
CVE-2023-28206 was reported to Apple by Clément Lecigne of Google’s Threat Analysis Group and Donncha Ó Cearbhaill of Amnesty International’s Security Lab. As Apple notes on the security content page for iOS & iPadOS 16.4.1, a firmware update Apple released just last week, the vulnerability involves IOSurfaceAccelerator and could have granted kernel-level arbitrary code execution to any installed app.
While the vulnerability exists in iOS & iPadOS 16.4 and older for the iPhone 8 and later, it’s worth mentioning that it’s unlikely to result in a public jailbreak release in its own. That’s because Apple bolstered security in the latest firmware releases, especially on newer devices, with the likes of PAC and PPL. These extra layers of security require additional bypasses for a jailbreak to function, which complicates things and adds quite a bit more work for jailbreak developers.
In any case, it’s still awesome to see Henze dropping Easter Eggs from time to time, as they’ve been known to assist the jailbreak community. For example, TrollStore developer opa334 is now leading an effort to make Fugu15 into a public jailbreak. This effort is currently being called Fugu15 Max, but it’s expected to carry a different name by the time it reaches the general public outside of the beta period.
Anyone interested in viewing Linus Henze’s recently released PoC can head over to his GitHub page to see more.
Are you excited to see what becomes of Henze’s latest proof of concept? Be sure to let us know in the comments section down below.


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Awesomenauts: Overdrive Announcement Trailer
Ronimo Games announces Awesomenauts: Overdrive, a new expansion coming in 2016 that adds a new matchmaking system, overhauls game mechanics, and more.
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